Auburn baseball secures elite 2017 recruiting class

Nov. 10, 2016

AUBURN, Ala. -- Auburn baseball and head coach Butch Thompson announced on Wednesday a stellar group of 14 newcomers for the 2018 season featuring some of the top talent from Alabama, Georgia and around the country.

"Overall, this is a great class that really fills all of our needs," Thompson said. "The neat thing about this class has been the ability to build and forge sincere, deep relationships. We think this class will have a great connection to our staff, to our program and ultimately as an alumni of Auburn University. I commend our staff for their hard work to put this group together."

The class features 12 high school players and two junior college signees. Included in the group are nine pitchers, three infielders and one outfielder.

The class marks the first full recruiting cycle for Thompson and his staff, who were hired in October 2015.

"This is a very versatile, balanced group," assistant coach and recruiting coordinator Brad Bohannon said. "It's got speed, it's got power -- both left and right-handed. These are all athletic kids that will provide a lot of versatility. In addition to being very talented, all of these guys are high character, high makeup players that are the kind of men we want in our program. I'm very excited about this outstanding group."

Carter Bowen
Plays at Cullman High School in Cullman, Ala. for coach Brent Patterson ... Helped Cullman to the 6A state championship in 2015, its first since 2008, and a runner-up finish in 2016 ... pitched in 12 games as a junior with a 1.56 ERA and 35 strikeouts in 31.1 innings ... Recorded a 3-0 record with four saves ... 4-1 as a sophomore with 45 strikeouts ... 1.99 ERA in 14 games with one save ... Appeared in nine games with three saves as a freshman ... Appeared in 40 games in the field as a junior with 23 RBI ... 31 RBI and 12 doubles as a sophomore while hitting .273 ... 2016 Underclass honorable mention

Tanner Burns
Plays at Decatur (Ala.) High School for coach Luke Lamb ... Ranked No. 16 nationally and the No. 5 right-handed pitcher in the country by Perfect Game ... 2016 Under Armour All-American ... 2015-2016 Underclass 1st Team All-America by Perfect Game ... selected for Perfect Game All-American Classic ... 2016 Alabama Class 6A Hitter of the Year ... Batted .472 with 13 home runs, 12 doubles, four triples and 60 RBI ... On the mound, he was 5-2 with a 1.11 ERA ... Added two saves with 80 strikeouts in 50.1 inning pitched ... Named to 2016 AL.com Super All-State team ... two-time ASWA first team All-State selection ... AL.com Huntsville Region Player of the Year ... selected to Team USA U17 national team ... Alabama All-Star sports week selection ... 2015 Decatur Daily Player of the Year ... summer team is FTB Tucci ... father, Mike, is head coach at Calhoun Community College ... brother, Link, is junior at Auburn

Cade Evans
Plays at Boyd Buchanan High School in Chattanooga, Tennessee for coach Josh Rider ... batted .424 as a junior with eight doubles and 18 RBI ... Tallied 35 stolen base and scored 46 runs ... TSWA All-State baseball selection ... All-District and All-Region ... Chattanooga Times Free-Press Best of Preps honoree ... named team defensive MVP ... No. 14 player in state of Tennessee ... No. 400 nationally according to Perfect Game ... 2016 Underclass 3rd team All-American ... Hit. 426 his sophomore season with 18 RBI ... Stole 41 bases in 42 attempts and scored 43 runs ... All-District and All-Region honoree following sophomore season ... selected o All-State Super Freshman/Sophomore team both seasons ... Batted .500 with 35 RBI as a freshman ... named team offensive MVP following ninth grade year ... helped team to a state berth ... For his high school career, has 101 stolen bases and scored 129 runs ... also a three-year basketball letterman ... two-time All-District and All-Region basketball player ... Summer team is Chattanooga Cyclones coached by George Koontz

Rhett Fetner
Plays at Handley High School in Roanoke, Ala. for coach Tyler Hall ... posted a 5-2 record with 2.03 ERA as a junior ... struck out 76 in 51.2 innings ... won seven games during his sophomore season with a 2.39 ERA and 82 strikeouts ... four-time All-County selection ... named second team All-State as a junior ... honorable mention all-state following sophomore season ... 6-3 as a freshman with 67 strikeouts ... 2016 Underclass High Honorable Mention by Perfect Game ... Also starts at quarterback for the football team ... All-County football player in 2016 ... Passed for more than 1500 yards and 15 touchdowns ... guided high school football team to second round of AHSAA playoffs

Dylan Gentry
Plays at Madison County High School in Danielsville, Ga. for coach Charlie Griffeth ... Ranked No. 307 nationally by Perfect Game ... No. 32 player in the state of Georgia ... 2016 Underclass 3rd team All-American ... 2016 Class 4A All-State selection by the Georgia Dugout Club ... posted a 6-2 record with a 0.76 ERA as a junior ... pitched 65 innings with 93 strikeouts ... first team All-region honoree ... all-area selection by Athens Banner-Herald ... helped team to 22-8 record and second round of the Class 4A state tournament ... 4-2 as a sophomore with a 1.27 ERA ... Struck out 51 in 38.2 innings ... Summer team is Team Elite coached by Brad Bouras

Peyton Glavine
Plays at Blessed Trinity Catholic in Roswell, Ga. for coach Andy Harlin ... Ranked No. 475 nationally by Perfect Game ... No. 8 LHP in Georgia ... No. 47 player overall in Georgia ... Posted a 6-0 record as a junior with a 0.80 ERA ... Struck out 37 in 26.1 innings ... Helped team to 2016 state runner-up finish and a state title in 2015 ... Summer team is Team DeMarini ... Son of Hall of Fame pitcher Tom Glavine

Cody Greenhill
Plays at Russellville (Ala.) High School for coach Chris Heaps ... Helped Russellville to back-to-back state titles in 2015-16 ... ASWA first team All-State honoree ... No. 112 player in the country according to Perfect Game ... No. 36 right-handed pitcher in the country ... Played for Marlins in 2016 East Coast Pro Showcase ... 13-3 as a junior with a 1.14 ERA ... Struck out 118 in 92.1 innings pitched ... 4-0 as a sophomore with 33 strikeouts in 35.1 innings ... pitched in six games as a freshman ... 2015 All-State honorable mention ... Alabama All-Star sports week selection ... Summer team is East Cobb Astros coached by Jamie Crane

Ryan Hoerter
Plays at Indian Trail Academy in Kenosha, Wisconsin for coach Michael Schmidt ... Posted an 8-0 record as a junior with a 1.17 ERA ... struck out 57 in 42.0 innings pitched ... rated No. 2 player in Wisconsin by PrepBaseballReport.com ... No. 410 nationally according to Perfect Game ... also hit .406 as a junior with two homers, nine doubles and 33 RBI ... first team All-Conference ... first team All-County selection ... second team All-District ... threw first no-hitter in school history in 2016 ... 2016 Underclass Honorable Mention by Perfect Game ... posted a 4-4 record as a sophomore with a 2.64 ERA and 40 strikeouts ... helped team to state appearance in 2015 ... summer team is Rawlings Hitters coached by RJ Fergus

Edouard Julien
Attends Cardinal-Roy Secondary school in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada ... member of the Canadian junior national team ... participated in tournaments in Florida and Cuba with Canada U18 national team during the summer of 2016 ... won gold with Team Quebec at the 18U National Championship in August ... hit .318 in the tournament with six RBI and two extra-base hits ... named top 15-year-old player in Quebec ... Named top prospect in Quebec as a 16-year-old ... Hit team-best .417 with four runs scored in Spring Training camp with Canada JNT in March, 2016 ... Had six hits in seven appearances in Cuba Series played in Havana ... Also saw national team action in the Dominican Summer League and on trip to face extended spring competition in Orlando ... won bronze with Team Quebec at the Baseball Canada Cup ... batted .381 in the event with five RBI and nine stolen bases ... Batted .273 in "Tournament 12" a high school showcase hosted by the Toronto Blue Jays

Jack Owen
Attends JSerra Catholic High School in San Juan Capistrano, Calif. ... ranked No. 166 nationally by Perfect Game ... No. 29 player overall and No. 2 left-handed pitcher in California ... 2016 Underclass 2nd team All-American ... 2016 WWBA World Championship All-Tournament selection ... 2015 Perfect Game Underclass National Championship Most Valuable Pitcher ... posted a 4-0 record with one save and a 0.00 ERA in the event ... second team Louisville Slugger High School All-American 2016 ... 2015 California Upper Class World Series MVP ... helped JSerra to state playoffs in 2015 ... second team All-State as a sophomore ... summer team is BPA DeMarini Elite 2017

Evan Steele
Plays at Chipola College in Marianna, Fla. for coach Jeff Johnson ... Spent freshman season at Vanderbilt ... Pitched in 11 games with a 4.63 ERA ... Struck out 14 in 11.2 innings pitched ... Ranked No. 229 in the nation for class of 2015 by Perfect Game ... No. 2 lefty in Georgia ... Named a preseason All-American in 2015 ... Lettered in four seasons at Marietta High School in Marietta, Ga. for coach Chris Stafford ... captained 2014 and 2015 teams ... Earned Region Pitcher of the Year in 2015 along with Team MVP... First Team All-Region in 2014 ... summer team was Team Elite Prime

Brendan Venter
Plays at McLennan Community College in Waco, Texas ... coach is Mitch Thompson ... batted .385 as a freshman with 15 home runs and 69 RBI ... Scored 56 runs with 17 doubles in 55 games ... helped MCC to conference title in 2016 ... 2016 NTJCAC first team All-Conference selection ... 2016 Texas-New Mexico JUCO All-Star Showcase home run derby champion ... Played for coach Jeff Sherman at Marcus High School in Flower Mound, Texas ... Batted .417 as a senior with 30 RBI ... two-time first team All-Area honoree ... All-State selection as a senior ... THSBCA All-Star ... District 5-5A MVP and District 6-6A Offensive MVP ... Academic all-state selection

Judd Ward
Plays at Russellville (Ala.) High School for coach Chris Heaps .... No. 272 player nationally according to Perfect Game ... 2016 Class 5A Player of the Year ... Helped Russellville to back-to-back state titles in 2015-16 ... Hit .488 with 41 RBI, 20 doubles and eight triples and two home runs ... Also stole 27 bases ... Named to AL.com Super All-State team ... ASWA first team All-State ... As a sophomore, batted .511 with five homers and 12 doubles ... Drove in 49 runs with six triples and 19 steals ... MaxPreps All-American ... 2016 Underclass High Honorable mention ... summer team is East Cobb Astros coached by Jamie Crane

Steven Williams
Plays at Deerfield-Windsor High School in Albany, Ga. for coach Jonathan Davis ... selected for Perfect Game All-American Classic ... 2016 Under Armour All-American ... helped Deerfield-Windsor to back-to-back state titles in 2015-16 ... Hit .524 with 16 doubles, three triples, 11 homers and 49 RBIs ... 11 homers are a school record ... Also a perfect 16-for-16 in stolen bases ... named the Albany Herald's Ray Knight Player of the Year ... CBS Max Preps Underclass All American ... East Coast Pro Invitee ... USA Tournament of Stars Invitee... Ranked No. 44 nationally by Perfect Game ... No. 3 catcher nationally ... two-time GISA Coaches first team All-State honoree ... All-Region from 2015-16 ... 2015 underclass high honorable mention by Perfect Game ... 2016 Underclass first team All-American ... batted .521 as a sophomore with five home runs and 29 RBI ... Added seven doubles and three triples ... member of Team USA 15U national team and 17U national team development program ... also starred in football ... All-State and All-Region running back/linebacker ... summer team is Team Elite Prime coached by Brad Bouras ... sister, Teasie, is a sophomore at Auburn